Clara was a doll on the plane. She slept the first 40 minutes or so, then played happily and flirted with everyone she could see. Lots of smiles. One of the flight attendants, an older woman, let Clara look at her shiny silver charm bracelet. It all went so smoothly I almost felt guilty. What an easy going kid.
Left: Clara decides to leave the boarding area.
Right: It's a bit chillier than at home, isn't it?
Jill picked us up. I don't really mind the long drive (an hour and a half or so) from the airport to Dad's because usually it's a chance to get some one-on-one (or at least small group) visiting in.
When we got to the house Julie's family and the other kids and Dad were already there. Zoey in particular was happy to see Clara. In fact one of the joys of this trip was how adorable Zoey is regarding Clara; she's very gentle and attentive and all smiles. She seems really happy to have Clara around.
Also at the house was a huge dining room table covered in different kinds of food. This year Dad decided to make a lot of the traditional Thanksgiving foods in advance to eat as leftoevers throughout the week, and then he made barbecued chicken and steaks and twice baked potatoes the actual day of Thanksgiving (all of which were really good). But for now there was leftover candy yams and that was good enough for me. Oh, and tons of pies, of course. Since 2014 Thanksgiving Dad swore up and down he wasn't going to make so many pies because it's just too much work, and yet somehow he ended up making (ballpark) 30 pies again this year. But, hey, it's delicious for us.
Anyway, highlights of the trip:
1. The hotel was peaceful and warm and comfortable. It was good to have a space to sleep and to not feel too stressed or guilty if Clara needed to cry it out a bit. We had a king size bed so we just let her sleep between us. She still slept fitfully the first night (I assume because everything was so different) but the second night we each were on either side of her in the dark waiting for her to wind down, and for a long time she would fidget and flip and flop all over the bed between us, alternating between putting her head down like she was snuggling to sleep and then popping back up to half-heartedly try to crawl over us. She made little sighs and grunts the whole time, and Jack and I just silently grinned at each other in the dark. Eventually she did fall asleep with minimal fussing. It was all pretty cute.
The hotel also has free breakfast every morning, so I would do my morning pump and then go get some since I was already up. The nice thing about being there so early is there were only one or two other people there with me. No line, no noise. Very peaceful.
Our hotel room also had a nice view: a snow covered gazebo with pine trees around it. Very wintery and scenic.
2. The snow was another joy, surprisingly. I'm not a big fan of snow, but it's easier to enjoy when you know in a few days you'll be back in a more temperate climate. It definitely was pretty, and it made Dad's house look like a gingerbread house out of a fairy tale, or something.
3. One morning/early afternoon Julie and I went downtown to get Starbucks together (actually she brought her own coffee and I got some hot chocolate). Jack was sweet enough to stay back and watch the kids. Julie and I sat on stools looking out the window watching the snowy day and we chatted about parenting (something we talk about a lot these days) and wills and the future and when and whether we'll have more kids. It was great to get some uninterrupted time with her.
4. That same day most of the adult children and Dad had gone up to the ranch to go snow mobiling. I was glad I stayed back. The house was relatively quiet. Julie and I hung out with our kids by the warm fire while they played with duplos. It was very chilly out at this point so it felt especially cozy inside.
Top: Clara and Zoey check out the snow from a warm distance.
Bottom: Harrison and Rocket enjoy the fire.
5. That night Miss Kristin came to babysit the kids and the adults all went to the local bar for karaoke. Unfortunately the karaoke DJ was sick, but that meant that most people cleared out and we had the bar pretty much to ourselves.
Posing for Wolfman Karaoke DJ so we could send him a picture showing he's missed.
The others took turns playing pool (RPS to choose teams) and I sat in a corner and talked mostly with Jill, also with Neil. We had a sort of jukebox war going on with some other person or people in the bar, not sure who. They kept picking really bad screamo music, and we kept picking various good music, either swing or 70s or whatever.
Neil and Ellen's reactions to screamo music.
At one point we played Tenacious D's "Tribute" and everyone got really into it, singing in unison. It practically was karaoke. Dad ordered pizza delivered and later I tried a rootbeer float shot that was actually really tasty. The whole night was a lot of fun.
7. We did fit a little Tichu in too. Clara fell asleep before we left for the hotel one night, and she slept the whole way there and stayed asleep after we got to our room. Julie et al had traded their hotel room with Neil and Everett, so I asked the boys if they wanted to play a (quiet) game of Tichu while Clara slept. It was a short game--Jack and Neil absolutely annihilated Everett and me--but it was fun nonetheless. Clara only woke up briefly and soon snuggled back to sleep directly on the bed, which was awesome.
During our hotel Tichu game, not sure what they're doing here.
The next day we played another game at Tejon while Sola helped watch Clara. This time Everett and I won. Sweet, sweet revenge. It's been a long time not only since we played Tichu at all, but also since we got to finish an entire game in one sitting. So that was pretty nice.
7. That day Jack and Neil went back home. Bryon took them. It was sad to see them go but also kind of nice to reduce the chaos a little bit. Our family has gotten a little big even for Tejon. That night Ellen, Everett, and I stayed up late in the family room and talked for hours. It was great to get some one-on-one visiting with them at the end there. We talked a lot about men and women and relationships, from what I can remember. I really love being such good friends with my siblings now that we're all adults. It's good to have people to talk to so easily. Also Clara hung out with us the whole time--Everett and I took turns holding her and pacing around while talking, or she just played on the floor and watched us. She's such an easy kid.
8. The next day Everett and Julie and her family left, and while Jill drove them to the airport, a long-time FB friend of mine, Jen, who lives in the same town came to visit/meet for the first time. It was really pleasant. We talked about Atlas Shrugged and Diet Coke and Clara and Jen's artwork and family. Can't hurt to know people in more places, right?
9. And finally, I'm grateful for how well-behaved Clara was when I flew back with her by myself. We got stuck going through security because one of my bottles of breast milk set off some alarm, and while they were patting me down she just sat on the floor grinning at me and at the TSA agents, who thought she was adorable. Then on the plane she was great almost the whole way. She kept grinning at the lady sitting next to us (who looked to be a bit older than my parents) and was even comfortable letting the lady hold her while I got more milk out of the overhead bin. Clara did start fussing at one point but it was only for a minute or two until I distracted her with her baby toothbrush. After we landed several people complimented her on how well she did. The guy in front of us (also older than my parents) made faces and funny noises at her and everyone kept watching her and smiling. It was super cute. I was very proud of her.
Seasoned traveler.
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